1
Extreme love and extreme hate
Feud is a show that you have to bear with a little before you’re rewarded. Ultimately it is on the deeper, angstier side, with some philosophical tones and food for thought- I think that’s in line with this screenwriter (she’s actually the reason I watched it). But it takes some time for the layers to fall into place.
The beginning has a silly tone, complete with sound effects and funny expressions. The FL is total ditz for at least 5-6 episodes, kind of annoying but not the worst I’ve seen. Some great tragedy / misunderstanding in the past is constantly hinted at with little real information, leaving you sitting there with growing impatience wondering where it’s all going.
But it turns out that many of the things I at first thought were poor writing, plot holes, or just general inconsistencies, were actually not. Don’t get me wrong, there are some of those too. But many are actually clues. This show loves grand plot twist reveals; it also loves misdirections and confusing hints. So by halfway through, I’d been whacked so badly by plot twists that I found myself constantly and suspiciously guessing at secrets and hidden plans. It’s that kind of show.
The main plot is about the feud between the ML and FL, both resolving it in the present as well as unveiling its origins in the past. The feud is so intense that at first I thought the backstory couldn't possibly be worthy of it... but in the end, I think it is. It was bad enough to merit a lot of hate- maybe not THAT much, but debatable- and I could also see and understand how it happened. A little communication would have gone a long way, of course, but its lack here was not as outrageous as some other shows. I was satisfied with the uncovered motivation and story.
Even more, I understood both sides of the feud, and my sympathies shifted back and forth from one lead to the other. I tend to think this is a sign of good writing in setting up a meaningful and multi-dimensional conflict, involving relatable characters with sympathetic actions and emotions. And it's nice that the characters in the end are more self-aware than not, and that there are some other characters to speak the audiences’ mind.
In general, there’s a lot to unpack in this show, and some themes are carried well throughout- autonomy, karma, love and hate, etc- I’m tempted to go on about it here, but this is a review and not a critical analysis, so just know that some of the issues can get philosophical if you think about them more deeply.
Of course, a show that’s only about two people tragically broken apart by misunderstandings and unfortunate but unintended developments would probably be somewhat depressing and unsatisfying to watch. So I am glad that they came up with some final villain for them to fight together. Unfortunately, this villain is not that well constructed or explained. Their story and motivation are in line with the themes, but introduced late and kind of glossed over, especially as the show gets pretty rushed towards the end.
In fact, I waited what felt like the entire show for the two leads to make up and work together, but it kept not happening. The feud only seemed to get worse as my frustration grew. This is not the angstiest drama I’ve seen- there are some breathing breaks and even flashes of lightheartedness- but it did start to test my patience. When finally things start looking up, we are only left with a rushed last few episodes.
For better or worse, though, this probably makes the show more bingeable, because you blow through it trying to get to the part where you can finally relax.
Main villain aside, I do think the characters are generally well constructed. Like many shows that want to be deep, there aren’t that many characters to truly hate. I was ok with it here because the show and I tended to agree on how to feel. My favorite character is probably Ling’er, who has her head screwed on remarkably straight.
I also like that this show puts a spotlight on many kinds of love. The core relationship is definitely a romantic love, but many other kinds of love are shown to be just as important. I wish this weren't so uncommon.
On a less flattering note, this xianxia world is one of the more poorly constructed that I’ve seen. Some concepts or aspects of the immortals’ lives seem too lofty, others too mundane. The entire setup and world mechanics are poorly explained (and don’t get me started on that Empyrean)- I think it’s just something you have to overlook.
For the acting, I thought it’s exceptionally good. Both Bai Lu and Zeng Shunxi have some great, nuanced expressions that convey lots of different and complicated emotions. They are just as convincing for the many dramatic, emotional scenes. I also thought the second leads did a good job (Ling’er with her resigned smile!) as well as many of the side characters, like Zhao Yiqin playing three different personalities.
For other production stuff, the costumes and styling are pretty good. Bai Lu looks super pretty in this show. The CGI is sometimes not bad but, erm, mostly not that great. But for the most egregiously bad SFX, I think it was on purpose as a joke, hah. The music is alright but not really my favorite... it set the mood well enough, but I think the emotional scenes helped the music more than the music helped the scenes.
Overall, this is one of those deeper, more philosophical shows that I like. But it is more angsty than my normal preference, and it feels like a lot of the show is spent waiting for things to get better. It also has so many plot twists, clues, and misdirection, that I think by the second half when they’re mostly done with, people were disappointed by the lack of further intrigue. So it isn’t perfect, but I still liked it; it made me think and feel, even if it was somewhat emotionally taxing.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS
The ending is... happy? The main couple does end up alive and together, but we only get a flash of their reunion. I found it somewhat unsatisfying.
The second leads also survive, though with no romance between them. I was happy with this more realistic development and with Ling’er saving herself rather than some guy doing it for her. However, I did secretly wish she could find the love she wanted.
Many likeable side characters die in the episodes leading up to the end, which is rather sad. There is a time reversal artifact, but luckily they don’t use this cheap trick. The role it actually plays is somewhat confusing and subject to debate.
BTW, not sure if this counts as a spoiler, but I found the ML’s love brain to be super extreme, almost as frustrating as the FL’s hate brain. But somebody on reddit pointed out that she was the first thing he saw and so he imprinted on her; that made it make a lot more sense to me. As for the FL’s hate brain, I was rooting for her to let it go, but I don’t think anyone really has the right to judge. Hatred can really feed on itself. And feelings are feelings; whatever a person feels is valid, as my therapist once said.
The beginning has a silly tone, complete with sound effects and funny expressions. The FL is total ditz for at least 5-6 episodes, kind of annoying but not the worst I’ve seen. Some great tragedy / misunderstanding in the past is constantly hinted at with little real information, leaving you sitting there with growing impatience wondering where it’s all going.
But it turns out that many of the things I at first thought were poor writing, plot holes, or just general inconsistencies, were actually not. Don’t get me wrong, there are some of those too. But many are actually clues. This show loves grand plot twist reveals; it also loves misdirections and confusing hints. So by halfway through, I’d been whacked so badly by plot twists that I found myself constantly and suspiciously guessing at secrets and hidden plans. It’s that kind of show.
The main plot is about the feud between the ML and FL, both resolving it in the present as well as unveiling its origins in the past. The feud is so intense that at first I thought the backstory couldn't possibly be worthy of it... but in the end, I think it is. It was bad enough to merit a lot of hate- maybe not THAT much, but debatable- and I could also see and understand how it happened. A little communication would have gone a long way, of course, but its lack here was not as outrageous as some other shows. I was satisfied with the uncovered motivation and story.
Even more, I understood both sides of the feud, and my sympathies shifted back and forth from one lead to the other. I tend to think this is a sign of good writing in setting up a meaningful and multi-dimensional conflict, involving relatable characters with sympathetic actions and emotions. And it's nice that the characters in the end are more self-aware than not, and that there are some other characters to speak the audiences’ mind.
In general, there’s a lot to unpack in this show, and some themes are carried well throughout- autonomy, karma, love and hate, etc- I’m tempted to go on about it here, but this is a review and not a critical analysis, so just know that some of the issues can get philosophical if you think about them more deeply.
Of course, a show that’s only about two people tragically broken apart by misunderstandings and unfortunate but unintended developments would probably be somewhat depressing and unsatisfying to watch. So I am glad that they came up with some final villain for them to fight together. Unfortunately, this villain is not that well constructed or explained. Their story and motivation are in line with the themes, but introduced late and kind of glossed over, especially as the show gets pretty rushed towards the end.
In fact, I waited what felt like the entire show for the two leads to make up and work together, but it kept not happening. The feud only seemed to get worse as my frustration grew. This is not the angstiest drama I’ve seen- there are some breathing breaks and even flashes of lightheartedness- but it did start to test my patience. When finally things start looking up, we are only left with a rushed last few episodes.
For better or worse, though, this probably makes the show more bingeable, because you blow through it trying to get to the part where you can finally relax.
Main villain aside, I do think the characters are generally well constructed. Like many shows that want to be deep, there aren’t that many characters to truly hate. I was ok with it here because the show and I tended to agree on how to feel. My favorite character is probably Ling’er, who has her head screwed on remarkably straight.
I also like that this show puts a spotlight on many kinds of love. The core relationship is definitely a romantic love, but many other kinds of love are shown to be just as important. I wish this weren't so uncommon.
On a less flattering note, this xianxia world is one of the more poorly constructed that I’ve seen. Some concepts or aspects of the immortals’ lives seem too lofty, others too mundane. The entire setup and world mechanics are poorly explained (and don’t get me started on that Empyrean)- I think it’s just something you have to overlook.
For the acting, I thought it’s exceptionally good. Both Bai Lu and Zeng Shunxi have some great, nuanced expressions that convey lots of different and complicated emotions. They are just as convincing for the many dramatic, emotional scenes. I also thought the second leads did a good job (Ling’er with her resigned smile!) as well as many of the side characters, like Zhao Yiqin playing three different personalities.
For other production stuff, the costumes and styling are pretty good. Bai Lu looks super pretty in this show. The CGI is sometimes not bad but, erm, mostly not that great. But for the most egregiously bad SFX, I think it was on purpose as a joke, hah. The music is alright but not really my favorite... it set the mood well enough, but I think the emotional scenes helped the music more than the music helped the scenes.
Overall, this is one of those deeper, more philosophical shows that I like. But it is more angsty than my normal preference, and it feels like a lot of the show is spent waiting for things to get better. It also has so many plot twists, clues, and misdirection, that I think by the second half when they’re mostly done with, people were disappointed by the lack of further intrigue. So it isn’t perfect, but I still liked it; it made me think and feel, even if it was somewhat emotionally taxing.
ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS
The ending is... happy? The main couple does end up alive and together, but we only get a flash of their reunion. I found it somewhat unsatisfying.
The second leads also survive, though with no romance between them. I was happy with this more realistic development and with Ling’er saving herself rather than some guy doing it for her. However, I did secretly wish she could find the love she wanted.
Many likeable side characters die in the episodes leading up to the end, which is rather sad. There is a time reversal artifact, but luckily they don’t use this cheap trick. The role it actually plays is somewhat confusing and subject to debate.
BTW, not sure if this counts as a spoiler, but I found the ML’s love brain to be super extreme, almost as frustrating as the FL’s hate brain. But somebody on reddit pointed out that she was the first thing he saw and so he imprinted on her; that made it make a lot more sense to me. As for the FL’s hate brain, I was rooting for her to let it go, but I don’t think anyone really has the right to judge. Hatred can really feed on itself. And feelings are feelings; whatever a person feels is valid, as my therapist once said.
Was this review helpful to you?
